13 April 2016 (Ishiyama Lumber)
Diamond lifts in Stephen and David behind the sawmill, and they start to sneak across towards the office. Out of casual view behind a stack of pallets they spot several chemical barrels; they’re labelled only with numbers, but seem to be full of liquid. A clipboard left lying on one of the barrels suggests it’s being sent to Lunton Biochemical, but there’s no price mentioned, and it’s been authorised by Ishiyama in person.
They get over to the office building, and David picks the front door lock. There’s a small room cut out of the reception area, labelled Security, with light visible under the door; the group heads round the other way, to what’s clearly the largest office in the place. It’s oddly decorated: there are photo frames on the desk, but they still have the stock photos in them, and a mounted boar’s head adorns the wall behind the desk.
There’s no paperwork, but there is a very high-tech-looking computer, bizarrely secured with a physical lock. David gets that open and starts rummaging through it, while the others keep an eye on the window.
He confirms the recent deliveries to Lunton Biochemical, though what the liquid is is still not noted; there’s also mention of shipments via Lunton to Eugene, Oregon. Ishiyama has apparently bought logging rights to various parts of the north-western USA off several big lumber companies, even though these areas are still within the Living Land. David also gets copies of several coded messages sent to Japan, though there isn’t time to decrypt them immediately.
As he’s finishing up, Stephen hears footsteps outside. He throws open the office door, to see three security guards with sub-machineguns ready. There’s an exchange of fire, but the team’s better-armoured than the guards and this rapidly tells. (While David’s under the desk, he spots the key to the computer rig.) Stephen picks up a set of night-vision goggles, and Diamond grabs an armoured vest just in case it might be useful; the team starts sneaking out again, because there are at least two more guards around somewhere. The security office has been abandoned; the team grabs recent tapes, and spots three guards having an energetic discussion by a pile of lumber.
The team heads back to the motel, rents a VCR, and takes turns sleeping and watching the tapes. It looks as if the barrels are coming in from various different suppliers, then being taken out all in one batch.
The next evening, the team heads over to Lunton Biochemical and takes a casual look from a safe distance. This is a single warehouse building in its own grounds; one end is clearly offices, judging by the small windows on both floors, while the other has a loading dock. There’s a pair of armed guards at each gate.